MIDC awaits govt review of 191 projects cleared by MVA

Mumbai: The Shinde-BJP government has stayed all land allotment decisions taken by the previous MVA government in its final month

Mumbai: The Shinde-BJP government has stayed all land allotment decisions taken by the previous MVA government in its final month. A total of 191 proposals involving 697 acres of land, and a projected investment of ₹12,000 crore will now be reviewed.

Mumbai, India - September 15, 2022: Police detain NCP activists during their protest against Eknath Shinde and Devendra Fadnavis government who took the employment of the youth of Maharashtra to foreign states as the 1 lakh 54 thousand crore project of Vedanta Group and Foxconn Company planned in Maharashtra was rushed to Gujarat, outside NCP Office, Ballard Estate, in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, September 15, 2022. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande) (HT PHOTO)

The government’s decision is significant in the light of Maharashtra losing out the $20 billion Vedanta-Foxconn project to Gujarat earlier this week.

The new government which came to power on June 30th had earlier revoked several decisions taken by the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi government and stayed 400 government resolutions that Uddhav Thackeray’s government had issued in its frenzied dying weeks.

On August 3, the government asked to review 191 proposals cleared by the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC) in June and July. These included a ₹5000 crore investment by United Phosphorus Limited at Shahapur in Thane, which is the chief minister Eknath Shinde’s bastion.

While MIDC officials are expecting the review to go smoothly, and believe that the state government will clear the projects, they say the review has stalled another 335 investment proposals that are now pending with them for approval. “Since there is a stay on the allotment decisions taken earlier, MIDC is not taking decisions on another 335 investment proposals pending with them. The proposals are expected to bring in ₹15,000 crore worth of investment and create about 40,000 jobs in the state,” said a senior official from state industries department.

The official who spoke on the condition of anonymity, added that MIDC has multiple levels of checks and balance for land allotment and the government’s review needs to be expedited to regain faith of the investors. “At MIDC, each and every proposal has to be approved at multiple levels starting from regional officer, to deputy CEO, joint CEO, CEO and the entire process is online. To win the investors’ trust, the stay has to be lifted and routine work needs to be started at the earliest.”

Both Harshdeep Kamble, principal secretary, industries, and MIDC CEO P. Anbalagan, did not respond to calls and messages asking them about the review.